Drainage apparatus



1966 P. c. HOFSTRA ETAL 3,279,467

DRAINAGE APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 18, 1963 1966 P. c. HOFSTRA ETAL 3,279,467

DRAINAGE APPARATUS Filed June 18, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS United States Patent 3,279,467 DRAINAGE APPARATUS Peter C. Hofstra, 149 Haledon Ave., Paterson, N.J.; Robert W. McKirdy, 24 Dobbs Terrace, Scarsdale, N.Y.; and Harvey J. Engelsher, 245 Rumsey Road, Yonkers, N.Y.

Filed June 18, 1963, Ser. No. 288,700 Claims. (Cl. 128276) The present invention relates to a means for draining fluid and/or withdrawing gases from enclosed spaces or cavities wherein the pressure of gas or air is required to be kept lower than that of the atmosphere. In particular this invention provides an apparatus whereby unwanted fluids and/or gases may be removed from the chest of a human being or an animal.

The need for drainage of the chest is usually present in post operative or traumatic conditions of the heart and thorax. Blood, serum and gas accumulate in the chest cavity thereby embarassing the breathing which cannot proceed effectually unless the air pressure within the chest cavity is kept below that of the atmosphere. In the instance of pulmonary dysfunction called broncho-pleural fistula the cavity communicates with the windpipe, and breathing activity may decline to a fatal minimum.

Presently available equipment used under such conditions has been designed to maintain negative pressure within the pleural cavity by suction from without; the suction so applied enables the lung to expand and inhale.

But the apparatus presently available has the disadvantage of being heavy, cumbersome, fragile, too large and diflicult to clean by sterilization and complicated to reassemble. The rubber parts deteriorate with repeated autoclaving, tubing connections and closures leak progressively and have to be sealed with tape with consequent hazard to the patient.

It is an object of this invention therefore to provide drainage apparatus consisting of unbreakable, sterilepacked plastic receptacles which are smaller and are integrally formed with their associated tubing.

Another object of this invention is to furnish the apparatus as a complete sterile-sealed assembly, having its own supply of water and therefore ready instantaneously for clinical application.

In the drawings FIG. I shows in sectionalized view the preferred drainage apparatus.

FIG. 11 is a view in perspective of the drainage apparatus; source of priming fluid is not shown.

FIG. III shows cross section in plan along X-X'.

The drainage collection chamber 1 is formed with an elastic base 2 to ensure its remaining immovable after placement on a floor or other smooth surface. A tube 3 from a vacuum source enters the chamber at the upper right of the drawing as shown. An inner reservoir 4 is centrally mounted on the inward base surface of the collection chamber 1 and is intruded by a tube 5 which is slidably connected through its outer orifice to a source 6 of physiologic saline or other solution which is controllably fed to inner reservoir 4 where the levels 8, 8 of solution in said reservoir and intruding tube 5 are adjusted similarly and simultaneously by raising or lowering tube 5 to produce the requisite level of low pressure in tube 9 which conveys collected fluids entering drainage chamber 1 at upper left hand of drawing as shown and carries them for storage to a level in drainage collection chamber below that of water seal 11.

The apparatus may be made of plastic having a high level of chemical inertness and heat resistance or of stainless steel and/or other metals suitable for the containment of chemically active gases and liquids.

In order to carry out drainage as in a post-operative 3,279,457 Patented Oct. 18, 1966 condition of thoracic surgery with the unit described, tube 1 is connected to a source of negative pressure such as a vacuum pump, reservoir 4 is partly filled with sterile saline or other solution from some source such as is typically shown at 6 and which is also used to cover the base of the collection chamber 1. Tube 9 is connected to the chest catheter of a patient.

The wall of reservoir 4 having been calibrated in centimeters indicates the difference of level between the liquid menisci in 5 and 4 which is at once a measure of the vacuum in the chest of the patient. The tube 5 is manually adjustable as to height, the distance of its intrusion below the level of the fluid in 4 varying inversely as the air pressure in 1. The saline solution in 1 admixes \m'th the collected chest fluid whose volume may be progressively read from a scale typically shown on the drawing; the water seal 11 isolates the intra-thoracic area from direct communication with the outer air. Upper end of tube 5 is generally open to the air but is shown in typical connection with a source of solution as during priming or replenishing of the apparatus. Ball 7 maintains sterile solution 6 intact before its introduction into chamber 1. Solution container and ball are then discarded.

The apparatus may be made of plastic having a high level of chemical inertness and heat resistance or of stainless steel and/or other metals suitable for the containment of chemically active gases and liquids.

We claim:

1. An apparatus in which fluids may be collected and stored, consisting of a first closed chamber formed with a supportive base, a second chamber within said first chamber open at its upper end and attachably mounted to the inner surface of the base thereof, said first chamber having formed integrally and perforate through its upper boundary a first tube open at its ends, one end leading inwardly to its termination immediately within said first chambers upper boundary, the other end adapted to be connected to a source of negative pressure, a second tube open at its ends leading outwardly through said upper boundary from its origin near the base of said first chamber, the outer end of said second tube adapted to be connected to a cavity to be aspirated, a third tube open at its ends and intruding downwardly through said upper boundary within the said second chamber and slidably mounted near to the said first and second tubes having, together with the said third tube, each its luminar axis disposed in parallel and vertical sense, whereby when the second chamber is primed with a liquid the third tube will act as an adjustable control for the negative pressure to be maintained in the first chamber.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1 in which the materials of construction are of plastic having a high level of chemical inertness and heat resistance.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1 formed of heat resistant and chemically inert plastic material and having suitably attached inferior to the base thereof a second base of elastic material formed with an outwardly disposed concave surface.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1 in which the materials of construction are stainless steel suitable for the containment of chemically active gases and liquids.

5. In a system adapted for clinical use a means for the drainage of fluids from the thoracic cavity consisting of a closed first chamber formed of transparent plastic material having an outwardly facing concave surface formed of elastic material, a second chamber of transparent plastic material completely contained within said first chamber and open at its upper end, said second chamber suitably attached at its base to the inner basic surface of the said first chamber, said first chamber having formed integrally with and perforate through its upper boundary a first tube of transparent plastic material open at its ends and leading inwardly to its termination immediately within the said upper boundary of said first chamber, and at its outward termination to a vacuum source, a second tube of transparent plastic material open at its ends and leading outwardly from its origin near the base of said first chamber, through said upper boundary of said first chamber, a third tube of transparent glass or transparent plastic material open at its ends and intruding downwardly within said second chamber and being slidably mounted within an orifice perforate through said upper boundary of said first chamber and in proximity to said first and second tubes, said second chamber and said third tube containing together a predetermined quantity of saline or other physiologically suitable solution, said first chamber containing also a predetermined quantity of solution similar to that con- References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,355,620 8/1944 Bower et a1 128-276 XR 2,397,257 3/1946 Goland et al. 128-276 RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner.

CHARLES F. ROSENBAUM, Examiner. 

1. AN APPARATUS IN WHICH FLUIDS MAY BE COLLECTED AND STORED, CONSISTING OF A FIRST CLOSED CHAMBER FORMED WITH A SUPPORTIVE BASE, A SECOND CHAMBER WITHIN SAID FIRST CHAMBER OPEN AT ITS UPPER END AND ATTACHABLY MOUNTED TO THE INNER SURFACE OF THE BASE THEREOF, SAID FIRST CHAMBER HAVING FORMED INTEGRALLY AND PERFORATE THROUGH ITS UPPER BOUNDARY A FIRST TUBE OPEN AT ITS ENDS, ONE END BEING INWARDLY TO ITS TERMINATION IMMEDIATELY WITHIN SAID FIRST CHAMBER''S UPPER BOUNDARY, THE OTHER END ADAPTED TO BE CONNECTED TO A SOURCE OF NEGATIVE PRESSURE, A SECOND TUBE OPEN AT ITS ENDS LEADING OUTWARDLY THROUGH SAID UPPER BOUNDARY FROM ITS ORIGIN NEAR THE BASE OF SAID FIRST CHAMBER, THE OUTER END OF SAID SECOND TUBE ADAPTED TO BE CONNECTED TO A CAVITY TO BE ASPIRATED, A THIRD TUBE OPEN AT ITS ENDS AND INTRUDING DOWNWARDLY THROUGH SAID UPPER BOUNDARY WITHIN THE SAID SECOND CHAMBER AND SLIDABLY MOUNTED NEAR TO THE SAID FIRST AND SECOND TUBES HAVING TOGETHER WITH THE SAID THIRD TUBE, EACH ITS LUMINAR AXIS DISPOSED IN PARALLEL AND VERTICAL SENSE, WHEREBY WHEN THE 